Manual traveling toy

ABSTRACT

A manual traveling toy includes a toy body, at least one wheel that projects downward further than a bottom surface of the toy body, is in contact with a traveling surface, and rotates about an axle shaft, a swing part that is swung in directions about a swing vertical shaft supported at a rear end side position in a traveling direction of the toy body to apply external force to the toy body and move the toy body in directions that cross the traveling direction, and a rotation-swing converting mechanism that converts rotary movement of the at least one wheel into swinging movement of the swing part.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present invention contains subject matter related to Japanese PatentApplication No. 2015-074665 filed in the Japan Patent Office on Mar. 31,2015, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a manual traveling toy, which includesa wheel and is caused to travel by being pushed and released by hand.

2. Description of the Related Art

Japanese Examined Utility Model Registration Application Publication No.7-37675 describes a traveling toy that includes a spring-loaded powersource. Front wheels and rear wheels are attached to a body casing ofthe toy, which is formed in imitation of a goldfish for example, and thetoy includes a caudal fin supported at the rear end of the body casingso as to be able to swing. When the wheels rotate and the toy travelsthrough the driving force caused by the spring that has been wound up,the caudal fin is swung by the to-and-fro power based on the movement ofan eccentric rotor plate. When the toy travels, in addition to the swingof the caudal fin, a tongue is caused to appear from and disappear intoa mouth and two pectoral fins are swung.

As regards the above-described toy, while the caudal fin and thepectoral fins swing with respect to the body casing, the body casingitself, which is made in imitation of a goldfish, travels forward buthas no other variations in the movements. When for example, a bodycasing shaped like a fish is used, merely swinging the caudal fin isinsufficient to express more realistic swimming patterns of a fish.

BRIEF SUMMARY

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a manual traveling toyincludes a toy body, at least one wheel that projects downward furtherthan a bottom surface of the toy body, is in contact with a travelingsurface, and rotates about an axle shaft, a swing part that is fixed toa swing vertical shaft supported at a rear end side position in atraveling direction of the toy body so that the swing part is swingableabout the swing vertical shaft, and a rotation-swing convertingmechanism that converts rotary movement of the at least one wheel intoswinging movement of the swing part.

Further, in the manual traveling toy, the wheel may be heavier than theswing part, and when in a plan view, the swing part is at a position towhich the swing part swings at maximum toward at least one side, acenter of gravity of the swing part may be positioned outside a range ofa width between outer edges positioned at both ends of a contact surfaceof the at least one wheel in a direction orthogonal to the travelingdirection.

Further, in the manual traveling toy, a distance from the center ofgravity of the swing part to the swing vertical shaft may be shorterthan a distance from a position at which an entire length of the swingpart is divided into equal lengths to the swing vertical shaft.

Further, in the manual traveling toy, in the plan view, the at least onewheel and part of the rotation-swing converting mechanism may bearranged side by side in the direction orthogonal to the travelingdirection.

Further, in the manual traveling toy, the at least one wheel may includetwo wheels supported apart on an axis identical to the axle shaft andpart of the rotation-swing converting mechanism is arranged between thetwo wheels.

Further, in the manual traveling toy, in the contact surface of the atleast one wheel, a central portion of the width in the directionorthogonal to the traveling direction may project further than the bothends.

Further, in the manual traveling toy, the at least one wheel may includea base and a covering material that covers the base and forms thecontact surface, and frictional force caused between the coveringmaterial and an identical traveling surface is larger than frictionalforce caused between the base and the identical traveling surface.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a manualtraveling toy includes a toy body, at least one wheel that projectsdownward further than a bottom surface of the toy body, is in contactwith a traveling surface, and rotates about an axle shaft, a swing partthat is fixed to a swing vertical shaft supported at a rear end sideposition in a traveling direction of the toy body so that the swing partis swingable about the swing vertical shaft, a rotation-swing convertingmechanism that converts rotary movement of the at least one wheel intoswinging movement of the swing part, and two sideward fall preventingmembers that in a plan view, project downward further than the bottomsurface of the toy body by a first height and are positioned on bothsides more outside than most outer surfaces of the at least one wheel,the most outer surfaces of the at least one wheel being positioned atboth ends of the at least one wheel in a direction orthogonal to thetraveling direction, the first height being smaller than a second heightfrom a contact surface of the at least one wheel to the bottom surfaceof the toy body.

Further, in the manual traveling toy, the toy body may include a forwardfall preventing member that in the plan view, projects downward furtherthan the bottom surface at a position on a more front side than the atleast one wheel in the traveling direction.

Further, in the manual traveling toy, the toy body may include arearward fall preventing member that in the plan view, projects downwardfurther than the bottom surface at a position on a more rear side thanthe at least one wheel in the traveling direction.

The aspects of the present disclosure provide a manual traveling toythat performs more interesting movements by giving variety to themovements of the toy body itself through the movements of the partsadded to the toy body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a bottom view illustrating a manual traveling toy according toan embodiment of the present disclosure, which is shaped in imitation ofa fish;

FIG. 2 is a plan view illustrating the manual traveling toy;

FIG. 3 is a rear view obtained when the manual traveling toy is seenfrom the rear in a traveling direction;

FIG. 4 is a side view illustrating a wheel, a rotation-swing convertingmechanism, a swing driving part, and a swing part;

FIG. 5 is a plan view illustrating the wheel, the rotation-swingconverting mechanism, the swing driving part, and the swing part;

FIG. 6A is a front view illustrating the swing driving part and theswing part;

FIG. 6B is a plan view illustrating the swing driving part and the swingpart;

FIG. 6C schematically illustrates a relation among a maximum swingangle, an eccentric amount of an eccentric cam, and a distance betweenthe centers of a swing vertical shaft and a shaft part;

FIG. 7A is a plan view illustrating a variation of the rotation-swingconverting mechanism;

FIG. 7B is a side view illustrating a variation of the rotation-swingconverting mechanism;

FIG. 8 illustrates a variation of a contact surface of the wheel;

FIG. 9 is a plan view that schematically illustrating a manual travelingtoy that includes three wheels;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the wheel that uses acomposite material;

FIG. 11 illustrates a variation in which a swing vertical shaft of theswing part is set at a position that deviates from the center of thewidth of the wheel; and

FIG. 12 illustrates a variation in which the swing vertical shaft of theswing part is set at a position outside the range of the width of thewheel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A preferred embodiment of the present disclosure is described in detailbelow. The present embodiment described below is not intended toimproperly limit the contents of the present disclosure, which arerecited in the claims, and it is not necessarily essential to includeall the constituents described in the present embodiment as a solutionaccording to the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a bottom view of a manual traveling toy 10 shaped in imitationof a fish and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the manual traveling toy 10. FIG.3 is a rear view obtained when the manual traveling toy 10 is seen fromthe rear in a traveling direction D1. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3,the manual traveling toy 10 includes, for example, a toy body 20 thatincludes shapes of a head, a trunk, a dorsal fin, and a pectoral fin ofa fish, a wheel 30 that projects downward further than a bottom surface20A of the toy body 20 and is in contact with a traveling surface 1, anda swing part 40 that includes a shape of, for example, a caudal finsupported at a rear end side position in the traveling direction D1 ofthe toy body 20.

When the manual traveling toy 10 according to the present embodiment ispushed and released by hand, the wheel 30 rotates and the manualtraveling toy 10 travels in the traveling direction D1 in FIGS. 1 and 2.With the rotation of the wheel 30, the swing part 40 performs to-and-froswinging movements in directions A1 and B1 indicated by arrows. In themanual traveling toy 10 according to the present embodiment, the swingpart 40 applies external force to the toy body 20, that is, energizesthe toy body 20 by performing the to-and-fro swinging movements andaccordingly, the toy body 20 traveling is caused to perform theto-and-fro movements or in the present embodiment, the to-and-frotilting movements in directions A2 and B2 indicated by arrows, in whichthe swing part 40 swings.

In other words, according to the present embodiment, when the wheel 30is rotated and a rotation-swing converting mechanism 50 causes the swingpart 40 to perform the to-and-fro swinging movements in the directionsA1 and B1, the swing part 40 applies external force to the toy body 20in the directions in which the swing part 40 is caused to swing, thatis, the swing part 40 energizes the toy body 20 in the direction inwhich the swing part 40 is swung, and the toy body 20 traveling is movedin the directions A2 and B2 that cross the traveling direction D1 or inthe present embodiment, tilted. Thus, the manual traveling toy 10 thatperforms more interesting movements, such as movements that mimic how afish swims, can be offered by giving variety to the movements of the toybody 20 itself through the movements of the swing part 40 added to thetoy body 20.

The manual traveling toy 10 that performs such movements may include twosideward fall preventing members 20B and 20C that are positioned on bothsides outside a width W of the wheel 30 in a direction D2 orthogonal tothe traveling direction D1 in the plan view illustrated in FIG. 1, andas illustrated in FIG. 3, project downward further than the bottomsurface 20A of the toy body 20 by a height H2, which is smaller than aheight H1 from the contact surface of the wheel 30 to the bottom surface20A of the toy body 20.

When the toy body 20 illustrated in FIG. 3 tilts in the direction B2,the sideward fall preventing member 20B comes into contact with thetraveling surface 1 and restricts the tilt. Similarly, when the toy body20 illustrated in FIG. 3 tilts in the direction A2, the sideward fallpreventing member 20 C comes into contact with the traveling surface 1and restricts the tilt. When the two sideward fall preventing members20B and 20C are provided, the toy body 20 can keep traveling in thetraveling direction D1 without falling while giving variety to thebehavior of the toy body 20 itself through the movements of the swingpart 40 added to the toy body 20. Other than the wheel 30, travelingresistance may be decreased by localizing the contact between thesideward fall preventing members 20B and 20C and the traveling surface1. To decrease the traveling resistance, a surface-contact area in whicheach of the two sideward fall preventing members 20B and 20C is incontact with the traveling surface 1 may be reduced or each of the twosideward fall preventing members 20B and 20C may be formed so as to havea point-contact shape or a line-contact shape.

Particularly when the single wheel 30 illustrated in FIG. 1 is provided,the toy body 20 may include a forward fall preventing member 20D, whichprojects downward further than the bottom surface 20A illustrated inFIG. 3 at a position on the more front (downstream) side than the wheel30, which is the more front end side in the traveling direction D1 ofthe toy body 20 than the wheel 30, in the traveling direction D1 in thebottom view illustrated in FIG. 1. The degree of the projection from thebottom surface 20A of the forward fall preventing member 20D may be setso as to be the same as or smaller than the height H1 by which the wheel30 projects from the bottom surface 20A. Thus, even if the toy body 20is likely to fall forward when the toy body 20 is pushed and released byhand, the forward fall preventing member 20D comes into contact with thetraveling surface 1 and can restrict the forward fall of the toy body20. Other than the wheel 30, the traveling resistance can be decreasedby localizing the contact between the forward fall preventing member 20Dand the traveling surface 1. Similarly, to decrease the travelingresistance, a surface-contact area in which the forward fall preventingmember 20D is in contact with the traveling surface 1 may be reduced orthe forward fall preventing member 20D may be formed so as to have apoint-contact shape or a line-contact shape.

The forward fall preventing member 20D is preferably provided to preventthe toy body 20 from falling forward when the toy body 20 is pushed andreleased by hand. However, particularly when the single wheel 30illustrated in FIG. 1 is provided, a rearward fall preventing member,which is not illustrated and projects downward further than the bottomsurface 20A illustrated in FIG. 3, may be provided instead of theforward fall preventing member 20D or together with the forward fallpreventing member 20D at a position on the more rearward (upstream) sidethan the wheel 30, which is the more rear end side in the travelingdirection D1 of the toy body 20 than the wheel 30, in the travelingdirection D1 in the bottom view illustrated in FIG. 1. The rearward fallpreventing member is useful when a vertical center line C2 of the wheel30 is positioned on the more front end side in the traveling directionD1 of the toy body 20 than the position of the center of gravity of thetotal weight of the manual traveling toy 10. Similar to the forward fallpreventing member 20D, the rearward fall preventing member may also beformed so as to decrease the traveling resistance.

The wheel 30 illustrated in FIG. 1 is positioned in the direction D2orthogonal to the traveling direction D1 in FIG. 1 on a center line C1,which divides the width of the toy body 20 into two approximately equalwidths, and is provided as for example, a single wheel. The wheel 30 hasthe width W divided into two approximately equal widths by the centerline C1.

Part of the toy body 20, which is exposed in a region except anunderside, is divided into for example, a head part 21, a left side part22, and a right side part 23. The left side part 22 is provided with aleft pectoral fin 22A and the right side part 23 is provided with aright pectoral fin 23A and a dorsal fin 23B.

Holding parts 24 and 25, which can be divided into two parts and areillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3, are accommodated between the left sidepart 22 and the right side part 23. The holding parts 24 and 25 areexposed only at the rear and through the underside relative to thetraveling direction D1.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are a side view and a plan view, respectively, whichillustrate the wheel 30, the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50, andthe swing part 40. As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the wheel 30includes an axle shaft 30A that projects from both side surfaces. Asillustrated in FIG. 5, the axle shaft 30A is provided in the directionD2 orthogonal to the traveling direction D1 in the plan view. The axleshaft 30A is rotatably held by the two holding parts 24 and 25. Therotation-swing converting mechanism 50 that converts the rotary movementof the wheel 30 into the swinging movement of the swing part 40 isprovided together with the wheel 30 between the two holding parts 24 and25.

The rotation-swing converting mechanism 50 includes an eccentric cam 51fixed to a side surface of the wheel 30 illustrated in FIG. 4. Forexample, a cam surface of the eccentric cam 51 has a circular outline. Acenter P2 of the eccentric cam 51 is eccentric from a center P1 of thewheel 30 by a distance δ1. The eccentric cam 51 is fixed to the wheel 30and rotates together with the wheel 30.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are a front view and a plan view, respectively, whichillustrate the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50 and the swing part40. The rotation-swing converting mechanism 50 further includes a camfollower 52 and a swing driving part 53 illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5.The cam follower 52 includes a first engaging part, which engages with acircumferential surface of the eccentric cam 51 and is for example, afirst groove part 52A, and a second engaging part, which engages withthe swing driving part 53 and is for example, a second groove part 52B.The cam follower 52 is driven for one cycle of to-and-fro movement with2×δ1 of stroke when the eccentric cam 51 turns substantially 360degrees. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 4, when the wheel 30 isturned substantially 90 degrees in a direction A3 while the center P2 ofthe eccentric cam 51 is at the highest position on the vertical centerline C2, the cam follower 52 including the first groove part 52A thatengages with the eccentric cam 51 is driven forward in a direction A4 bythe distance δ1. Subsequently, when the wheel 30 is further turnedsubstantially 90 degrees in the direction A3, the center P2 of theeccentric cam 51 is set at the lowest position on the vertical centerline C2. Thus, the cam follower 52 is driven rearward in a direction B4by the distance δ1. Subsequently, when the wheel 30 is further turnedsubstantially 90 degrees in a direction B3, the center P2 of theeccentric cam 51 is set at a traveling rear end side position from thevertical center line C2 and the cam follower 52 is driven rearward inthe direction B4 by the distance δ1. Subsequently, when the wheel 30 isfurther turned substantially 90 degrees in the direction B3, the centerP2 of the eccentric cam 51 returns to the highest position on thevertical center line C2 and the cam follower 52 is driven forward in thedirection A4 by the distance δ1. Thus, while the wheel 30 turnssubstantially 360 degrees, the swing part 40 swings in the direction A1,returns in the direction B1, swings in the direction B1, and returns inthe direction A1.

When the cam follower 52 is driven, the swing driving part 53illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5, 6A, and 6B swings about a swing verticalshaft 53A and causes the swing part 40 joined to the swing driving part53 via a joining part 41 to swing. The swing vertical shaft 53A thatprojects upward and downward from a body part 53B of the swing drivingpart 53 as illustrated in FIG. 4 is rotatably held by the two holdingparts 24 and 25 as illustrated in FIG. 1, and FIG. 1 depicts the supportat the lower end of the swing vertical shaft 53A. As illustrated inFIGS. 6A and 6B, the body part 53B includes a shaft part 53C parallel tothe swing vertical shaft 53A at a position eccentric from the swingvertical shaft 53A by a distance δ2. As illustrated in FIG. 5, thesecond groove part 52B of the cam follower 52 engages with the shaftpart 53C of the swing driving part 53. Thus, as illustrated in FIGS. 5and 6B, when the cam follower 52 is driven forward in the direction A4,the body part 53B of the swing driving part 53 swings about the swingvertical shaft 53A and causes the swing part 40 to swing in thedirection A1. When the cam follower 52 is driven rearward in thedirection B4, the body part 53B of the swing driving part 53 swingsabout the swing vertical shaft 53A and causes the swing part 40 to swingin the direction B1.

Described below are conditions for moving, or tilting in the presentembodiment, the toy body 20, which is traveling, in the directions A2and B2 that cross the traveling direction D1 by applying external forcewith the swing part 40 to the toy body 20 in the direction in which theswing part 40 is swung, that is, by energizing the toy body 20 with theswing part 40 in the direction in which the swing part 40 is swung withthe rotation of the wheel 30.

Load that the wheel 30 receives from the swing part 40 during the travelis proportional to the weight (mass) of the swing part 40 and a distanceL1, which is a distance from the center of gravity G of the swing part40 to the swing vertical shaft 53A as illustrated in FIG. 5. When theload is too large, the wheel 30 fails to rotate or stops immediatelyafter starting to rotate. Thus, the swing part 40 is made light. Inaddition, the wheel 30 is made heavier than the swing part 40. Sincekinetic energy generated for the wheel 30 through the travel isproportional to the mass of the wheel 30, when the mass of the wheel 30increases, energy usable to move the swing part 40 increases as well,and kinetic energy needed to move the swing part 40 at a certain speedis small when the mass of the swing part 40 is small, and thus, theswing part 40 can swing for a long time when there is a large differencebetween the mass of the wheel 30 and the mass of the swing part 40. Ifthe swing part 40 is heavier than the wheel 30, the kinetic energyneeded to swing the swing part 40 relative to the kinetic energygenerated for the wheel 30 increases and the length of time during whichthe swing part 40 swings decreases.

When it is taken into account that the swing part 40 is typically formedof resin, the wheel 30 preferably employs a material heavier than theswing part 40, such as metal or a composite material that includesmetal. The wheel 30 needs to ensure relatively large frictional force orgrip, which occurs between the wheel 30 and the traveling surface 1. Inview of the load that the wheel 30 receives from the swing part 40, whenthe frictional force is small, there is apprehension that the wheel 30slides and stops rotating on the traveling surface 1, and as a result,the swing part 40 is no more able to swing. Particularly, since it isassumed that the traveling surface 1 is a slippery surface, such as atable surface or a floor surface, the material of the wheel 30 needs tobe determined by taking both the weight and frictional force causedbetween the wheel 30 and the contact surface into account. Although inthe present embodiment, the wheel 30 is formed of brass and the contactsurface is processed so as to have a moderate surface roughness, this isa mere example and as described above, the material of the wheel isdesirably determined by taking both the weight and frictional forcecaused between the wheel and the contact surface into account.

In the present embodiment, the swing part 40 easily applies the externalforce large enough to move the toy body 20 in the directions A2 and B2that cross the traveling direction D1 to the toy body 20. Thus, in theplan view illustrated in FIG. 1, the position of the center of gravity Gof the swing part 40 at the time when the swing part 40 is at theposition to which the swing part 40 swings at the maximum toward atleast one side is outside the range of the width W of the contactsurface of the wheel 30. When the center of gravity G of the swing part40 moves to the position apart from the width W of the wheel 30 asdescribed above, the wheel 30 easily loses equilibrium. Thus, the toybody 20 easily moves, or easily tilts in the present embodiment, in thedirection A2 when the swing part 40 swings in the direction A1, andmoves, or easily tilts in the present embodiment, in the direction B2when the swing part 40 swings in the direction B1.

In the present embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 1, a swing angle θ isequal to for example, 30°, by which the swing part 40 swings at themaximum toward one side. The swing angle θ can be provided through thetrigonometric function schematically illustrated in FIG. 6C such that θis approximately equal to arctan (δ1/δ2) when an eccentric amount of theeccentric cam 51, which is the distance δ1 (see FIG. 4), and thedistance δ2 between the centers of the swing vertical shaft 53A and ashaft part 63C (see FIG. 6B) are used and it is taken into account thatthe shaft part 53C swings about the swing vertical shaft 53A, or to beprecise, moves horizontally by a distance shorter than 1.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the distance L1 from the center of gravity Gof the swing part 40 to the swing vertical shaft 53A is preferablyshorter than a distance L2 from a position P3 at which the entire lengthof the swing part 40 is divided into equal lengths to the swing verticalshaft 53A. Accordingly, the load that the wheel 30 receives from theswing part 40 when the wheel 30 travels, which is proportional to theweight of the swing part 40 and the distance L1 from the center ofgravity G of the swing part 40 to the swing vertical shaft 53A, can bereduced and the manual traveling toy 10 can travel for a longerdistance.

To allow the toy body 20 to move easily, that is, to allow the swingpart 40 to energize the toy body 20 in the directions A2 and B2 thatcross the traveling direction D1 using the external force to move or inthe present embodiment, tilt the toy body 20 in the directions A2 and B2that cross the traveling direction D1, the total weight of the toy body20, the wheel 30, and the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50 needsto be small. In the present embodiment, the above-described total weightis made light by forming the parts other than the wheel 30 from resin.

The position of the vertical center line C2 of the wheel 30 illustratedin FIG. 4 in the traveling direction D1 is preferably set at the centerof gravity of the total weight of the manual traveling toy 10 (notillustrated), that is, the total weight of the toy body 20, the wheel30, the swing part 40, and the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50,or is preferably close to the above-described center of gravity so as tobe more to the front or the rear. Accordingly, the external force largeenough to move the toy body 20 in the directions A2 and B2 that crossthe traveling direction D1 can easily act on the wheel 30, that is, thetoy body 20 can easily be energized in the directions A2 and B2 thatcross the traveling direction D1 and the toy body 20 can easily move, oreasily tilts in the present embodiment.

A radius r of the wheel 30 may be determined by the relation with theweight of the swing part 40 and the travel distance per 360-degree turnof the wheel 30. Although the wheel 30 is desirably made as large aspossible, if the wheel 30 is too heavy, the total weight of the manualtraveling toy 10 is too large and the external force applied from theswing part 40, that is, the energization by the swing part 40 might failto move the manual traveling toy 10 in the direction A2 or B2 so anupper limit of the radius r is set in relation to the weight of thewheel 30. While the width W of the wheel 30 may be made small so as toincrease the radius r of the wheel 30 and reduce the weight of the wheel30, a lower limit of the width W is also set so as to ensure stabilityin the sideward swing during the travel.

The radius r of the wheel 30 is determined in view of the traveldistance per 360-degree turn of the wheel 30 in addition to the above.The travel distance per 360-degree turn of the wheel 30 can be indicatedas 2πr. As described above, every time the wheel 30 turns substantially360 degrees, the swing part 40 is swung in the directions A1 and B1 andperforms one cycle of to-and-fro movement. If the travel distance 2πrper 360-degree turn of the wheel 30 is short, the toy body 20 performsone cycle of to-and-fro movement in the directions A2 and B2 every timethe wheel 30 turns substantially 360 degrees, and the tilting movementsare difficult to be visually recognized. Thus, the radius r of the wheel30 is set so as to be larger than or equal to 9 mm and the traveldistance 2πr is set so as to be larger than or equal to at least 56.5 mmso that the toy body 20 moves, or tilts in the present embodiment, toperform one cycle of to-and-fro movement in the directions A2 and B2.When the toy body 20 is tilted in the directions A2 and B2 as in thepresent embodiment, increasing the radius r of the wheel is advantageousbecause the increase raises the position of the center of gravity of thewheel 30 and facilitates the tilt of the toy body 20 in the directionsA2 and B2.

A variation of the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50A is describedwith reference to FIGS. 7A and 7B. When two wheels 31 are providedaround an identical axis as illustrated in FIG. 7A, the eccentric cam51A illustrated in FIG. 7B may be arranged between the two wheels 31 andpart of the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50A that includes theeccentric cam 51A may be arranged between the two wheels 31.Accordingly, the equilibrium of the rotation-swing converting mechanism50A at rest in the direction D2 orthogonal to the traveling direction D1is enhanced and the position at rest can be stabilized. In theembodiment illustrated in FIG. 5, in the direction D2 orthogonal to thetraveling direction D1 in the plan view, the wheel 30 and part of therotation-swing converting mechanism 50 are arranged side by side.Accordingly, the equilibrium of the toy body 20 at rest easily becomeslost in the width direction D2 orthogonal to the traveling direction andthe toy body 20 during the travel easily tilts because of the externalforce from the swing part 40, compared to FIG. 7B.

Although the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50A illustrated inFIGS. 7A and 7B may use the rotation-swing conversion principleillustrated in FIG. 5, a rack and pinion system is employed instead. Acam follower 54 of the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50A includesa groove 54A that engages with the eccentric cam 51A (see FIG. 7B) and arack 54B (see FIG. 7A). A swing driving part 55 of the rotation-swingconverting mechanism 50A includes a swing vertical shaft 55A, a drivegear 55B fixed to the swing vertical shaft 55A, a shaft part 55Cparallel to the swing vertical shaft 55A, and a pinion gear 55D that isfixed to the shaft part 55C and meshes with the rack 54B and the drivegear 55B.

When the cam follower 54 moves rearward in the direction A4 with therotation of the wheels 31, the rack 54B causes the pinion gear 55D torotate in a direction A5 and accordingly, the drive gear 55B is rotatedand the swing part 40 swings in the direction A1. Similarly, when thecam follower 54 moves forward in the direction B4 with the rotation ofthe wheels 31, the rack 54B causes the pinion gear 55D to rotate in adirection B5 and accordingly, the drive gear 55B is rotated and theswing part 40 swings in the direction B1. Thus, similar to therotation-swing converting mechanism 50, the rotation-swing convertingmechanism 50A also enables the swing part 40 to swing. To reduce theweight of the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50, the cam follower54 and the swing driving part 55 may be formed of resin.

The center of gravity G of the swing part 40 at the time when the swingpart 40 is at the position to which the swing part 40 swings at themaximum may be positioned outside the range of the width W between outeredges positioned at both ends of the contact surfaces of the two wheels31 illustrated in FIG. 7A in the direction D2 orthogonal to thetraveling direction D1. When the center of gravity G of the swing part40 is moved to the position off the width W between the outer edges ofthe two wheels 31 positioned at the both ends positioned in thedirection D2 as described above, the wheel easily loses the equilibrium.Thus, the toy body 20 can easily move, or easily tilt in the presentembodiment, in the direction A2 when the swing part 40 is swung in thedirection A1, and the toy body 20 can easily move, or easily tilt in thepresent embodiment, in the direction B2 when the swing part 40 is swungin the direction B1.

FIG. 8 illustrates a variation related to the shape of the contactsurface of the wheel 30 or 31 described above. In the contact surface ofthe wheel 30 or 31 illustrated in FIG. 8, a center position P4 of thewidth in the direction D2 orthogonal to the traveling direction D1projects from both ends P5 by a height δ3. While various shapes thatsatisfy such conditions are conceivable, in the present embodiment, theshape of the contact surface is curved so as to satisfy theabove-described conditions. Accordingly, the toy body 20 easily tiltseven at rest and the external force caused by the swing of the swingpart 40 enables the toy body 20 traveling to easily tilt. A flat surfacewith a small width, which includes the center position P4, may beprovided in a central portion of the wheel 30 or 31.

The structure that allows the toy body 20 to easily tilt is applicableto a case in which the toy body 20 includes a front wheel and a rearwheel. FIG. 9 is a plan view schematically illustrating a manualtraveling toy that includes, for example, a front wheel and two rearwheels 33 and 34. The two rear wheels 33 and 34 illustrated in FIG. 9may be arranged together with the rotation-swing converting mechanism50A that is illustrated in FIG. 7A and applied to the two wheels 31.Instead of the two rear wheels 33 and 34, a single rear wheel may beprovided, which may be arranged together with the rotation-swingconverting mechanism 50 illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5. Even when themanual traveling toy illustrated in FIG. 9 is used, the external forceof the swing part 40 swung by the rotation-swing converting mechanism 50illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 or the rotation-swing converting mechanism50A illustrated in FIG. 7A, that is, the energization by the swing part40 enables the toy body 20 to move, or tilt in the present embodiment.In this case, the three wheels 32, 33, and 34 may have substantially thesame outside diameters. Further, the rear wheels 33 and 34 may each havethe contact surface illustrated in FIG. 8, which is curved. To enhancethe erect (freestanding) property of the toy body 20 at rest, at leastthe central portion of the contact surface of the front wheel 32 or eachof the rear wheels 33 and 34 may be made as a flat surface and thecontact surface of the other wheel may have the curved shape illustratedin FIG. 8. When the central portion of each of the rear wheels 33 and 34has a flat surface with a small width, which includes the centerposition P4, the toy body 20 may be moved easily or in the presentembodiment, tilted easily by making the flat surface of each of the rearwheels 33 and 34 narrower than the flat surface provided in the centralportion of the front wheel 32 in the width direction. Thus, while theerect (freestanding) property of the toy body 20 at rest is stabilizedby the front wheel 32, the external force from the swing part 40, thatis, the energization by the swing part 40 caused during the travel ofthe toy body 20 ensures the function of moving or in the presentembodiment, tilting the toy body 20.

FIG. 10 illustrates the wheel 30 formed of a composite material. In FIG.10, the wheel 30 includes a base 30B that has the axle shaft 30A, and acovering material 30C that covers the base 30B and forms the contactsurface. The base 30B is formed of a material different from thecovering material 30C, and frictional force that occurs between thecovering material 30C and an identical traveling surface is larger thanfrictional force that occurs between the base 30B and the identicaltraveling surface. Thus, the frictional force (grip) that occurs betweenthe contact surface and the wheel 30 may be increased. For example, thebase 30B may use polyacetal (POM) resin and the covering material 30Cmay use chloroprene rubber. The total weight of the base 30B and thecovering material 30C, that is, the total weight of the wheel 30 isdesirably larger than the weight of the swing part 40. In this case, anyone of the base 30B and the covering material 30C may be formed of amaterial larger in specific gravity than the swing part 4. Accordingly,the wheel 30 is easily made heavier than the swing part 40.

FIGS. 11 and 12 illustrate variations in which the movement or in thepresent embodiment, the tilt of the toy body 20 in one direction, withthe swing of the swing part 40 is increased. In the plan view in FIG.11, the swing vertical shaft 53A is at a position that deviates from thecenter line C1 of the wheel 30 in the width direction D2. In this case,the movement or in the present embodiment, the tilt of the toy body 20in the direction A1 with the swing of the swing part 40 is increased andvariety can be given to the movement of the toy body 20 traveling and atleast the movement in the direction A1 is increased while facilitatingthe visual recognition. In the plan view in FIG. 12, the swing verticalshaft 53A is at a position outside the range of the width W of the wheel30. In this case, the movement or in the present embodiment, tilt of thetoy body 20 in the direction A1 with the swing of the swing part 40 isfurther increased and more variety can be given to the movement of thetoy body 20 traveling and the movement in the direction A1 is increasedwhile facilitating the visual recognition.

According to the above-described embodiment, the rotation-swingconverting mechanism 50 converts the rotary movement of at least onewheel into swinging movement of the swing part 40 and the swing part 40applies external force to the toy body 20, that is, energizes the toybody 20 in the direction in which the swing part 40 is swung, and thus,the toy body 20 is moved, or tilted in the present embodiment, in thedirection in which the swing part 40 swings, which is the direction D2that crosses the traveling direction D1. In other words, the manualtraveling toy 10 according to the present embodiment travels whilemoving, or tilting in the present embodiment, alternately in thedirections in which the swing part 40 swings. Accordingly, the manualtraveling toy 10 that performs more interesting movements, such asmovements that mimic how a fish swims, can be offered by giving varietyto the movements of the toy body 20 itself through the movements of theswing part 40 added to the toy body 20. In addition, since extraarrangement of a driving source, a component for tilting the toy body20, and the like is unnecessary according to the present embodiment,material costs can be reduced.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, when a single wheel isprovided, the position of the center of gravity G of the swing part 40during the swing is set outside the range of the width of the contactsurface of the wheel. When a plurality of wheels are provided, theposition of the center of gravity G of the swing part 40 during theswing is set outside the range of the width between outer edgespositioned at both ends of each contact surface of the plurality ofwheels in the direction D2 orthogonal to the traveling direction.

The load that the wheel receives from the swing part 40 during thetravel is proportional to the weight (mass) of the swing part 40 and thedistance L1 from the center of gravity of the swing part to the swingvertical shaft. When the load is too large, the wheel fails to rotate orstops immediately after starting to rotate. Thus, the swing part 40 ismade light. In addition, the wheel is made heavier than the swing part40. Since kinetic energy generated for the wheel 30 through the travelis proportional to the mass of the wheel 30, when the mass of the wheel30 increases, energy usable to move the swing part 40 increases as well,and kinetic energy needed to move the swing part 40 at a certain speedis small when the mass of the swing part 40 is small, and thus, theswing part 40 can swing for a long time when there is a large differencebetween the mass of the wheel and the mass of the swing part 40. Thewheel easily loses equilibrium by shifting the center of gravity of theswing part 40 to a position apart from the above-described width of thewheel, and the toy body 20 easily moves, or easily tilts in the presentembodiment, in the direction in which the swing part 40 swings.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the distance L1 from thecenter of gravity of the swing part 40 to the swing vertical shaft isshorter than the distance L2 from the position P3 at which the entirelength L of the swing part 40 is divided into equal lengths to the swingvertical shaft. Accordingly, the load that the wheel receives from theswing part 40 during the travel, which is proportional to the weight ofthe swing part 40 and the distance L1 from the center of gravity of theswing part 40 to the swing vertical shaft 53A, can be reduced and themanual traveling toy 10 can travel for a longer distance.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, in a plan view, the at leastone wheel and part of the rotation-swing converting mechanism arearranged side by side in the direction D2 orthogonal to the travelingdirection D1. Accordingly, the equilibrium of the toy body 20 at rest inthe width direction D2 orthogonal to the traveling direction D1 is lost,and the toy body 20 tilts during the travel because of the externalforce from the swing part 40, that is, the energization from the swingpart 40.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the at least one wheelincludes two wheels supported apart on an axis identical to the axleshaft and part of the rotation-swing converting mechanism is arrangedbetween the two wheels. Accordingly, the equilibrium of the toy body 20at rest in the width direction D2 orthogonal to the traveling directionD1 is enhanced and the position at rest is stabilized.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, in the contact surface ofthe at least one wheel, a central portion of the width in the directionD2 orthogonal to the traveling direction D1 projects further than theboth ends. Accordingly, the toy body 20 easily tilts even at rest sothat the axle shaft deviates from the horizontal state and due to theexternal force caused by the swing of the swing part 40, that is, theenergization by the swing of the swing part 40, the toy body 20 duringthe travel moves, or tilts in the present embodiment.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the at least one wheelincludes the base 30B and the covering material 30C that covers the base30B and forms the contact surface, and frictional force caused betweenthe covering material 30C and an identical traveling surface is largerthan frictional force caused between the base 30B and the identicaltraveling surface. Accordingly, the frictional force (grip) causedbetween the wheel and the contact surface can be enhanced because of thecovering material 30C.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the manual traveling toy 20includes the toy body 20, at least one wheel that projects downwardfurther than the bottom surface of the toy body 20, is in contact with atraveling surface, and rotates about an axle shaft, the swing part 40that is fixed to the swing vertical shaft supported at a rear end sideposition in the traveling direction of the toy body so that the swingpart 40 is swingable about the swing vertical shaft, the rotation-swingconverting mechanism that converts the rotary movement of the at leastone wheel into the swinging movement of the swing part 40, and the twosideward fall preventing members 20B and 20C that in a plan view,project downward further than the bottom surface of the toy body 20 bythe height H2 and are positioned on both sides more outside than themost outer surfaces of the at least one wheel, the most outer surfacesof the at least one wheel being positioned at both ends of the at leastone wheel in the direction D2 orthogonal to the traveling direction D1,the height H2 being smaller than the height H1 from the contact surfaceof the at least one wheel to the bottom surface of the toy body 20.Accordingly, the rotation-swing converting mechanism converts the rotarymovement of the at least one wheel into the swinging movement of theswing part 40 and the swing part 40 applies external force to the toybody 20 in the direction in which the swing part 40 is swung, that is,the toy body 20 is moved, or tilted in the present embodiment, in thedirection in which the swing part 40 swings, which is the direction D2that crosses the traveling direction D1. In other words, the travel isperformed while moving, or tilting in the present embodiment, the manualtraveling toy 10 alternately in the swing directions. Accordingly, themanual traveling toy 10 that performs more interesting movements can beoffered by giving variety to the movements of the toy body 20 itselfthrough the movements of the swing part 40 added to the toy body 20. Inaddition, when the two sideward fall preventing members 20B and 20C areprovided, the toy body 20 can keep traveling in the traveling directionD1 without falling while variety is given to the movements of the toybody 20 itself through the movements of the swing part 40 added to thetoy body 20. Other than the wheel 30, the traveling resistance may bedecreased by localizing the contact between the sideward fall preventingmembers 20B and 20C and the traveling surface.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the toy body 20 includes theforward fall preventing member 20D that in the plan view, projectsdownward further than the bottom surface at a position on a more frontside than the at least one wheel in the traveling direction D1.Accordingly, even if the toy body 20 is likely to fall forward when thetoy body 20 is pushed and released by hand, the forward fall preventingmember 20D comes into contact with the traveling surface and canrestrict the forward fall of the toy body 20. Moreover, other than thewheel 30, the traveling resistance can be decreased by localizing thecontact between the forward fall preventing member 20D and the travelingsurface.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the toy body 20 includes therearward fall preventing member that in the plan view, projects downwardfurther than the bottom surface at a position on a more rear side thanthe at least one wheel in the traveling direction D1. The rearward fallpreventing member may be provided instead of or in addition to theforward fall preventing member 20D. Particularly, the rearward fallpreventing member is useful in a structure that easily falls rearward,such as in a case where the vertical center line (the center of gravity)of the wheel is positioned on a more front end side in the travelingdirection D1 of the toy body 20 than the position of the center ofgravity of the total weight of the manual traveling toy 10.

Although the present embodiment is described above in detail, thoseskilled in the art will readily understand that many variations that donot depart from new matters and advantages of the present disclosuresubstantially are possible. Therefore, it should be noted that suchvariations are all included in the scope of the present disclosure. Forexample, a term used at least once in the specification or drawingstogether with a different term that has the broader or the same sensecan be replaced with the different term in any portion in thespecification or drawings.

What is claimed is:
 1. A manual traveling toy comprising: a toy body; atleast one wheel that projects downward further than a bottom surface ofthe toy body and is configured to contact a traveling surface and torotate about an axle shaft; a swing part that is fixed to a swingvertical shaft supported at a rear end side position in a travelingdirection of the toy body so that the swing part is swingable about theswing vertical shaft; and a rotation-swing converting mechanism thatconverts rotary movement of the at least one wheel into swingingmovement of the swing part.
 2. The manual traveling toy according toclaim 1, wherein the wheel is heavier than the swing part, and the swingpart is at a position to which the swing part swings at maximum towardat least one side, a center of gravity of the swing part is positionedoutside a range of a width between outer edges positioned at both endsof a contact surface of the at least one wheel in a direction orthogonalto the traveling direction.
 3. The manual traveling toy according toclaim 1, wherein a distance from the center of gravity of the swing partto the swing vertical shaft is shorter than a distance from a positionat which an entire length of the swing part is divided into equallengths to the swing vertical shaft.
 4. The manual traveling toyaccording to claim 1, wherein the at least one wheel and part of therotation-swing converting mechanism are arranged side by side in thedirection orthogonal to the traveling direction.
 5. The manual travelingtoy according to claim 1, wherein the at least one wheel comprises twowheels supported apart on an axis identical to the axle shaft and partof the rotation-swing converting mechanism is arranged between the twowheels.
 6. The manual traveling toy according to claim 1, wherein in thecontact surface of the at least one wheel, a central portion of thewidth in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction projectsfurther than the both ends.
 7. The manual traveling toy according toclaim 1, wherein the at least one wheel comprises a base and a coveringmaterial that covers the base and forms the contact surface, andfrictional force caused between the covering material and an identicaltraveling surface is larger than frictional force caused between thebase and the identical traveling surface.
 8. A manual traveling toycomprising: a toy body; at least one wheel that projects downwardfurther than a bottom surface of the toy body and is configured tocontact a traveling surface and to rotate about an axle shaft; a swingpart that is fixed to a swing vertical shaft supported at a rear endside position in a traveling direction of the toy body so that the swingpart is swingable about the swing vertical shaft; a rotation-swingconverting mechanism that converts rotary movement of the at least onewheel into swinging movement of the swing part; and two sideward fallpreventing members that project downward further than the bottom surfaceof the toy body by a first height and are positioned on both sides moreoutside than most outer surfaces of the at least one wheel, the mostouter surfaces of the at least one wheel being positioned at both endsof the at least one wheel in a direction orthogonal to the travelingdirection, the first height being smaller than a second height from acontact surface of the at least one wheel to the bottom surface of thetoy body.
 9. The manual traveling toy according to claim 8, wherein thetoy body comprises a forward fall preventing member that projectsdownward further than the bottom surface at a position on a more frontside than the at least one wheel in the traveling direction.
 10. Themanual traveling toy according to claim 8, wherein the toy bodycomprises a rearward fall preventing member that projects downwardfurther than the bottom surface at a position on a more rear side thanthe at least one wheel in the traveling direction.